


Under the Mistletoe

by starlightfury



Series: A Rowaelin Holiday [1]
Category: Throne of Glass Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 04:37:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17073605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starlightfury/pseuds/starlightfury
Summary: Prompt: Are you the one putting mistletoe absolutely everywhere in this apartment building, or do you just happen to be in the right place at the right time every single time I walk under it AU





	Under the Mistletoe

For the fourth time that week, Rowan passed under the mistletoe hanging above the doorframe of the apartment building at the same time as Aelin did. As always, he pretended not to notice it. He was starting to get a little suspicious. It couldn’t just be a coincidence, could it?

He grimaced to himself as they entered the elevator together. Rowan and Aelin were acquaintances; they lived on the same floor and he had talked to her a few times at their neighbor Aedion’s many parties and whatnot, but that was about it. Aelin was friendly enough that normally he might make small talk on the ride up to the seventh floor, but the mistletoe business made Rowan feel uncomfortable. Was she offended by the fact that he hadn’t even acknowledged the situation? He hoped that maybe she hadn’t noticed it was there.

Today Aelin’s arms were loaded with shopping bags. She caught Rowan looking at them and flashed him a sheepish grin. “Last minute Christmas shopping,” she said. “I don’t know how it got to be three days away.”

Rowan smiled in return, but it felt awkward on his lips. Mercifully, the elevator dinged, saving him from having to come up with a response. The doors opened and he let her go first. Rowan tried very hard not to look up at the mistletoe hanging from the ceiling as they neared her door. Aelin was busy fumbling with her keys and didn’t seem to see it there.

“Do you need some help?” he asked. His natural chivalry kicked in despite the awkward situation. _You’re making it awkward, you buzzard_ , he thought to himself. _I bet she hasn’t even noticed._

“No, I’ve got it, but thank you,” she said, opening her door. She glanced at him over her shoulder. “Are you going to Aedion’s Christmas Eve party?”

Rowan’s thoughts had wandered back to the mistletoe, so it took him a moment to process what she had asked. “Oh, uh, yes.”

She smiled and nodded. “Guess I’ll see you then.”

“Yeah, guess so.” Rowan managed to give her a half smile before she shut the door. _Real eloquent, Rowan._ He shook his head and looked up at the ceiling again, figuring he’d probably bump into her under some mistletoe again before Aedion’s party. _You should just kiss her,_ a voice in the back of his mind said. _You know you want to._ He huffed a breath, making his way to his apartment. _No, I don’t_ , he told himself as he fit the key into the lock, but he knew it was a lie. _She probably doesn’t want me to kiss her anyway._ Not that telling himself that actually made him want to do it any less.

He sighed, resisting the urge to bang his head repeatedly against the door he had just closed. He couldn’t deny that she was gorgeous, with her light hair and blue and gold eyes, and the self-confidence she paraded around with. And what he’d seen of her personality amused and intrigued him. He wanted to know everything about her, to be the one person she trusted with that precious knowledge.

_Damn it._

Rowan didn’t know when, exactly, he had started feeling this way, but the mistletoe certainly wasn’t helping things.

* * *

As Aelin wrapped her many presents, her mind wandered to Rowan and how many times she had ended up, not entirely coincidentally, under a piece of mistletoe with him. Not that he’d seemed to notice that it was there. Or maybe he had and was pointedly ignoring it. She tried not to think about it being a blatant rejection, but she knew that he was always aware of his surroundings and likely noticed that it was everywhere. She didn’t know where it came from, but she wasn’t complaining, although it did sting a little every time another opportunity passed by unseized. She supposed she could make the first move, but he had never shown any interest in having such a thing happen, and she couldn’t bear to embarrass herself in such a way. She had a couple more days to feel him out, but she was beginning to doubt that anything would come of it.

The phone rang. It was Lysandra. “Hey girl!” she exclaimed when Aelin answered. Aelin smiled faintly, but didn’t feel up to matching her friend’s enthusiasm.

“What’s up?”

“I need your opinion on which dress I should wear to Aedion’s party.”

Aelin sat down on the couch. She honestly wasn’t surprised; Lysandra was famous for multiple wardrobe changes. It made planning for any kind of outfit coordination difficult. “I thought you decided on the blue one two days ago.”

“I did, but now I’m thinking either the purple or the red.”

Aelin laughed. “As I recall, you ruled that out entirely.”

“Yeah, but I just got this killer new red lipstick and I want to wear it.”

“Red lipstick goes with anything,” Aelin told her. “There’s no way it won’t look good on you. Aedion will go crazy.”

That was exactly what Lysandra wanted to hear. She and Aedion had started dating about two months ago, and they were still in the honeymoon phase. “That’s the goal. I think the red dress would complement it best. Ooh! Could I borrow your silver heels?”

Aelin sighed, but she was smiling. “I guess. But only because I like you.”

Lysandra squealed. “This is why we’re best friends. And on that note, why does my best friend sound so down? Disappointed that your secret crush won’t take my hints and just kiss you already?”

Aelin sat up straight. “ _You_ hung all that mistletoe up? You don’t even live in this building!”

“Of course it was me! Someone had to do _something,_ because you certainly wouldn’t do it yourself.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Come on, you and I both know that if you were gonna make a move you would have done it by now.”

Aelin stammered a halfhearted start to a protest, then sighed. “It doesn’t matter anyway. He’s not interested. I’m almost positive he’s noticed it and he won’t even acknowledge that it’s there.”

“I’m sorry, girl, I really thought this would help. Maybe he’s shy. You’ve still got a few days to try to make something happen. It might work out.”

Aelin hoped she was right.

* * *

 

The next day, as Aelin was coming back from the library and Rowan from the grocery store, they passed under the front doorway at the same time again. Aelin struggled to keep her face passive, as if she hadn’t noticed the small branch above her. Little did she know that Rowan was dealing with the same internal struggle. It became more difficult as they entered, discovering that a whole line of mistletoe had been hung all the way to the elevator. Aelin felt heat creeping up her neck to her cheeks. Rowan dug his nails into his palms. He briefly considered taking the stairs, but thought better of it when he realized that Aelin had definitely seen the mistletoe. It would be obvious that he was trying to avoid her, and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings because she would probably take it the wrong way.

“Who hung all this?” he found himself asking as Aelin pressed the elevator button. He hadn’t really expected her to answer, so he was surprised when she did.

“Someone overly enthusiastic, I’m sure,” she said wryly.

Rowan thought he’d be granted a reprieve when he entered the elevator, but he was sorely mistaken. The whole ceiling was covered in mistletoe. Aelin’s blush increased.

“I wonder how many people have actually kissed under this,” she murmured, not realizing she’d said it aloud. Rowan looked at her. She was staring up at the carpet of green. He felt his self-control slipping away. Worse, he felt himself not wanting to hold on to it. Before he even realized he was doing it, he set his grocery bags down, pressed the emergency stop on the elevator, and stepped toward her.

“Guess we better just embrace it,” he said, and braced himself for the inevitable rejection. What was he _doing_? Aelin turned to look at him. Rowan couldn’t read her expression. He was about to apologize and step away when she dropped her bag of books with a _thunk_ and moved to meet him. When their lips met, everything melted away. It was exactly what they had been waiting for. When they finally pulled apart, their faces were still only inches away from each other.

“You know, mistletoe is poisonous,” Rowan breathed. Aelin’s laugh warmed his face, and he kissed her again.

 

* * *

 

When Aelin arrived at the party on Christmas Eve, Rowan was already there, talking to Lysandra and Aedion. His eyes immediately went to Aelin, who blushed. Lysandra gave Aelin a knowing look as they embraced, before she pulled Aedion away, claiming they had more guests to greet. Aelin hadn’t seen Rowan since the elevator incident, but she noticed that there was considerably less mistletoe hanging in their apartment building. Aedion had seen Rowan and Aelin exiting the elevator, faces flushed and eyes bright, and had likely told Lysandra that her meddling had worked.

Now they stood in front of each other, and Aelin wasn’t exactly sure what to say. She was praying that it hadn’t been a fluke.

“Hi,” Rowan said softly.

“Hey,” Aelin responded, still blushing. “Merry Christmas.”

Rowan smiled, and Aelin’s stomach knotted. “Merry Christmas.” His gaze slid upward and Aelin’s followed it to a familiar green plant hanging above them. When she looked back at him he was watching her. A small smile tugged up the corners of her lips.  
“Guess we better just embrace it.”


End file.
